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THE SUMMER LUXURY BEAUTY EDIT – NEW IN PRODUCTS I’M REACHING FOR EVERY DAY

I’ve never really been a beauty writer as such, and therefore I’ve shied away a little from featuring it on the blog on a regular basis. Sometimes I feel like it’s easier to talk about fashion if you don’t have any formal experience in the industry because although it is competitive and can be quite judgemental, if you’re talking about your personal style you can very much get away with talking about what you like and why you like it rather than discussing the technical aspects of the material or fit.

Beauty on the other hand, I find a lot harder. Sometimes it feels as though if you’re applying a product wrong, or your technique is different to someone else’s that you’re opening yourself up to a whole world of criticism. I have no idea whether I’m coming or going when it comes to makeup, but I know what I like, how I like to wear it and why and therefore I’ve decided to take a more relaxed approach to featuring it on here and on Youtube as I do with fashion.

TLDR; I don’t have much experience when it comes to writing about beauty but I’m gonna give it a go and if I get something wrong or don’t do something the way the experts do please don’t come for me cos I’m just having fun with it.

I feel like 26 has been a huge turning point for me already. I’ve made some monumental life decisions and I’m seriously going after what I want from my personal life and my career – I think maybe this is what they mean by growing up. With my maturing attitude to life, my approach to makeup and clothes is starting to change too. Six months ago you’d have found me in heavy coverage foundation, always with my brows done, some kind of warm toned eye, contouring and a liquid lip. As the summer months have rolled around and I’m reconsidering my wardrobe, I have also been reconsidering the products that I put on my face.

I have been loving more natural skin, letting my freckles come through for once and give my face a bit of character. I’ve been shying away from liquid lipsticks, finding them almost harsh on my face, and have instead been reaching for glosses or a more satin finish lipstick. I’ve worn little to no eye makeup, and have left my brows natural more often than not and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed getting to know my own face again. Now I’m not saying that when winter rolls around I won’t reach for a heavier coverage again, but I thought it would be nice to show you guys the products I’ve been reaching for the most this summer.

In case you weren’t already aware, not only do they have a wicked selection of clothes, but TK Maxx also do beauty. In the past I hadn’t been able to find anything more than the very occasional Mac lipstick in battered packaging, but recently I’ve been finding some absolute gems including (to my shock) Burberry makeup. I’d been wanting to try some Burberry beauty products for a long time, but to buy them full price they are exceptionally expensive. TK Maxx however had everything under £20 so of course your gal got a little bit spendy. I’ve been favouring the Fresh Glow BB cream (Shade 01 Nude Rose) for the no makeup days where I want a little summin’ summin’ on my skin but don’t want to commit to foundation. It oxidises slightly on the skin so gives a little bit of coverage, but mostly it just makes my skin look super glowy and healthy, however on the days I have been wanting to wear a little more on the skin I combine the Fresh Glow Luminous Fluid Base as a primer and the Fresh Glow foundation over the top.

Now the shade range in store is of course lacking somewhat so it is a little like a game of chance to see what you’re going to get. The foundation I have in the shade ‘Warm Honey’ which would be too dark for me in the winter months but is perfect for when I have fake tan on. It’s a light to medium coverage and definitely buildable however I like to use just one small pump of it to cover my face and leave it at that. I saw the Fresh Glow Luminous Fluid Base a few weeks ago and got excited at the shade (02 Golden Radiance). I mis-read the packaging and assumed this was a foundation and that the 02 would be much much lighter than my Warm Honey (32) however when I got home I discovered it was in fact the primer and was definitely designed for ladies with a darker skin tone. I realised when I swatched it on my hand however that it doesn’t give much in the way of colour payoff and is only there as an illuminator so I have been using it under my darker foundation regardless and I don’t think you can really tell. I will definitely repurchase this because the glow it gives your skin is insane although I will certainly watch which shade I pick up in the future.

Onto the eyes now and I’m going to keep this one a little more brief. I’ve actually been keeping my eye makeup super simple recently too, often favouring just a bit of bronzer in my crease and my standard eyeliner flick and mascara, however when I do want to wear shadow I’ve been reaching for this beauty also from Burberry in the shade Shell. This is so beautiful and shimmery it almost looks like foil on the lid and I’m desperate to try it with a wet brush to see how that would affect it as well. The eyeliner I reach for continuously isn’t one from TK Maxx and is instead one I buy from Selfridges as a treat once a year – this is the Tom Ford Eye Defining Pen and holy moly it’s the best thing I’ve ever used. One end is a very small tip which is perfect for detail, and the other side is a slightly longer brush which is what I use usually for doing my flicks and for the liner over the lid. The colour pay off is insane – such an intense black and it simply glides over the lid with ease. The packaging is also super boujee and I can’t get enough of it.

Finally onto the lips and I need to take a moment to talk about my new baby. I recently watched a lot of vlogs by Victoria at the launch of the Guerlain Rouge G lipsticks and I immediately knew that I needed them all. This are quite possibly the most expensive lipsticks I’ve ever seen so I have only invested in one so far, but what I love the most about these is the customisation. Once you have selected the shade you want (I believe mine is 006) you then choose a case from a number of different designs. I went for the black marble case which is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen and I honestly couldn’t be happier with it – the lipstick is a satin finish which gives a nice dewy look to the lips and doesn’t feel drying at all. The colour pay off is brilliant, but you can also achieve a more sheer coverage if you go in lightly.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this little round up of the luxury beauty items I’m reaching for again (and again) this summer. I hope to make these posts a little more of a regular thing while I diversify the content I bring to this blog so please do let me know if there is anything in particular you’d love for me to write about.